he U.S.
Food and Drug Administration has issued an import
control on farm-raised catfish, basa, shrimp,
dace, and eel from China . All shipments of these
products from China will be detained at the border
until importers can prove they are free of
antimicrobials (nitrofuran, malachite green,
gentian violet, and fluoroquinolone) that are not
approved for use in the United States.
NOAA Fisheries Service supports this action by
the FDA to safeguard the health and well-being of
American seafood consumers. Although the FDA says
that levels of these drug residues found in
seafood are very low and do not pose an immediate
health risk, the United States has a zero
tolerance and has taken this action to ensure the
long-term safety of seafood. Because there is no
imminent health threat, the FDA is not seeking a
recall or advising consumers to destroy
farm-raised seafood from China they have already
purchased.
NOAA Fisheries Service would like to remind the
American public that science has shown seafood to
provide tremendous health benefits. Today's action
by the FDA should be seen as a public safeguard
measure and in no way should prompt people to stop
eating seafood. Americans love our seafood as
evidenced by new figures which show that we
increased our consumption in 2006 from 16.2 pounds
per person to 16.5 pounds per person.
Concern about the quality of farmed seafood
imports further supports the need for expanded
aquaculture in the United States. We need to be
more self-sufficient in producing safe and healthy
seafood here at home.
